The subject matter herein relates generally to receptacle connectors having stub-less contacts.
High speed electrical connectors typically transmit and receive data signals across a mating interface. For example, some known receptacle connectors are mounted to a circuit board and include a card slot that receives a card edge of a plug connector at the mating interface. The receptacle connectors have contacts with deflectable spring beams at the mating interface that are spring loaded against the plug connector when the plug connector is loaded into the slot.
However, known receptacle connectors are not without disadvantages. For example, the spring beams in some known receptacle connectors include lead-in portions that extend from a contact location, which is the area of the spring beam that engages the plug connector, to a distal tip or end of the spring beam. The lead-in portions guide the plug connector into proper alignment with the contact locations of the spring beams as the plug connector is loaded into the card slot. The intended electrical current path extends from the contact location rearward along the length of the contact to a termination end of the contact. The lead-in portion of the spring beam is in front of the contact location, and therefore outside of the intended current path. The lead-in portion forms an antenna-like hanging conductive feature, or stub segment, which can reduce signal transmission performance of the high speed electrical connectors. For example, the stub segment can increase signal loss by acting as an antenna that discharges electrical energy from the connectors. In addition, the stub segment can negatively affect the impedance at the mating interface, which increases electrical resistance at the mating interface. Furthermore, the stub segment can provide a pathway for electrical resonance to reflect back and forth along the lengths of the contacts, causing a standing wave that degrades the signal transmission performance.
A need remains for a receptacle connector that has contacts that provide lead-in to a plug connector without forming antenna-like stub segments that can degrade the signal transmission performance.